Mnangagwa punts major electoral reforms

Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa is pushing for an overhaul of the country’s Constitution in a move critics say is meant to influence his succession after he abruptly abandoned a bid for a third term. Mnangagwa (81) is serving his second and last term after succeeding long time ruler Robert Mugabe following a military coup in 2017, but a loud campaign was already visible for him to run for another term in four years, The East African notes. Soon after his controversial election last year, which was condemned by most foreign observers as not credible, the octogenarian leader started hinting at a third term. After a groundswell of opposition to the third term bid in the security sector and even from within his Zanu PF party, Mnangagwa announced a week ago that he will no longer stay beyond his constitutionally mandated two terms. However, his administration is now pushing for constitutional amendments that observers say will roll back major electoral reforms that were initiated following the intervention of the Southern African Development Community in 2008 to end the cycle of disputed polls in Zimbabwe. Some of the proposed constitutional changes would include the transfer of key responsibilities such as voter registration from the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to a government department. The drawing of electoral boundaries will also be taken away from the ZEC and given to a commission appointed by the President, if the constitutional amendments are adopted. Critics say the proposed constitutional changes will also give Mnangagwa the power to choose a successor so that he continues to be influential in Zimbabwe’s politics beyond his rule. During his reign, Mnangagwa has faced persistent accusations that he manipulates the law to create a one-party state. In 2021, he pushed through 27 constitutional amendments in one go.